YoYo Reccomendation

Yo-Yo Reviews Looking for Help/Recommendation
1

Lately ive been watching a lot of YoYo videos, and i really would like to start this hobby again. All my experience comes from when i was a kid… Nothing special. Just playing around with my yomega fireball.

I would really like to start to learn the more in depth tricks so what yoyo would you guys recommend? Im obviously a beginner, but i would like a yoyo that is capable of doing it all as i tend to pick up on things quite easily. As far as price range, i would like to keep it under 100.

any and all help is appreciated.

thanks

2

top 3 choices for a beginner(in my opinion of course) are the YYF One, YYJ Legacy or the YYJ Dark Magic II…all of these are reasonably priced throws ranging from $10-$40. All three come with 2 types of bearings(responsive and non-responsive) so as you progress you can just change the bearing instead of buying a new yoyo. Out of the 3 my favorite is the DMII…but i am biased! ;D

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3

I agree with the above poster.

I have the ONE, I have the Dark Magic II, and I am biased towards the Dark Magic II.

I strongly recommend the Dark Magic II

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4

Velocity or hitman pro. You could go with the Dark Magic 2, but I personally am not a big fan of the shape.

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5

Hmmm, I’m not so sure.
I own a DMII and it is really, really (REALLY) good. Since it comes it a slim bearing it is a good yo-yo for beginners. And the Speeder 2 as well.

But for cheap yo-yos, the ONE, WhIp come to mind.

It also comes down to preference, like heavier yo-yos and have some cash to burn? DMII. Lighter yo-yos? Speeder 2
But if you want something more money friendly, go for the ONE and whIp are options as well.

Hope this helped a bit!

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6

If you want cheap go with the YoYoFactory One.

If you want nice go with YoYoJam Dark Magic II.

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7

A Duncan Freehand2 is a really good choice. As long as you have extra SILICONE stickers and not friction stickers, and you can clean the bearing to make it unresponsive when needed.

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8

Seems like everyones saying the Dark Magic 2. Ill do a little more research before making my final decision. But as of now its the DM2

thanks so far for everyones help

-xICooRsYIx

9

A lot of us started here with the DM2. It’s heavily pushed here at YYE, mainly since it’s a signature yoyo of the owner. But, that aside, it is a great yoyo. I like it. Lots of other people like it. It’s also a popular model. However, just like anything else, it comes down to personal preferences. It’s on the large size and the heavy side. It’s designed to be used by beginners and advanced players and is seriously good enough to last your entire yoyo “career”. It comes with a narrow and full spec bearing to let you move from responsive to unresponsive play. The response pads can be replaced with flowable silicone if you want to. You can play with the caps in or out, which affects both the weight and allows for inner ring grinds if you’re into that.

So, I’m biased towards the DM2. I won’t apologize for that. I got more expensive yoyos, and yet this is the one I keep going to time and time again. I’m talking about stuff like a 54, Code 1, Avalanche, Gnarwal and other stuff.

The Legacy II is an all plastic signature by the owner of YYE as well. I don’t have any experience with this, but most people I’ve talked to like the Legacy. The Legacy II is new, so we can’t expect as many people to have it yet. This is a good way to go that route while saving money. I still recommend the DM2. The metal rims will give you more stability.

I have the ONE and while I like it, it’s not a go-to item. It seems to cater to new people of course, especially in the package with 2 bearings, which if you’re going to go that way, that’s the package to get. It’s cheap, it’s durable, but it’s very light, but then again, it’s all plastic, so that makes sense. This is great beginner yoyo for the price and with the extra bearing gives you some growing room. If you’re more advanced, it gives you a different challenge in either bearing. I mean, if pressed, it’s good. It’s no clunker that’s for sure, but I think you’ll do better with a DM2. The increased of the DM2 will give you longer spin times.

As far as the Duncan Freehand 2 suggestion, I have 2 of them. One is a “regular” one, one is a “Freakhead” edition, bought because I work a horror film festival. They are OK at best. The Freehand Zero would be a much better option. A Freehand Zero modified by XminusmikeX would be even better. I can speak from experience as I have a “stock” FHZ and a modified one and they are worlds apart. I do second the recommendation about the silicone stickers over the friction stickers. Friction stickers suck and don’t last long, while the silicone stickers last a good longtime. As much as I like my custom FHZ, I still go back to my DM2. If you’re going down the Duncan route, I hear wonderful things about the Raptor. I’m not quite interested in it enough yet to purchase one of my own but that may change.

ALSO, keep in mind, there is so much tied to preferences. I like the DM2. Raphael, who posted in this thread, does not care for it. I can respect and accept that.

The DM2 was also my first “modern yoyo” I purchased. I don’t really consider the Reflex or Imperial I started with to modern designs.

Now you have the problem of deciding for sure and purchasing! Don’t narrow your options, but do work within your budget. $100 is a LOT of budget. We’re mostly steering you in the sub-$50 market because you’re a beginner. You can always upgrade or get something else later and keep the DM2 as a secondary or primary throw.

I swear, I should be getting commissions!

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10

If you can figure out how to bind (which really is not too hard), then I would go with a Protostar or a Raptor. Both of these are very forgiving when learning new tricks. I prefer the Raptor (it’s one of my favorite yoyo’s and absolutely my favorite <$50 yoyo, I don’t actually care for how the Protostar feels), but you’ll need to clean the bearing before you use it (there are videos that show you how to do this. You can watch them and see if it’s something you’d want to do or not).

I got Raptor’s for both of my boys when they started getting into yoyo-ing. I still enjoy borrowing their Raptors and throwing them for a bit.

Although, there’s another school of thought that says that if you’re a beginner, you should try an all plastic yoyo like a ONE. The reason for this is that it’s not as forgiving as something like a Protostar and will force you to perfect your throwing technique. Not sure how valid this is, but I thought I’d throw it out there.

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11

I think it’s perfectly valid.

My thoughts are “each yoyo brings something different”. This is why I advocate variety. My smaller bearing yoyos are less forgiving than my C-bearing yoyos. Different weight, widths and diameters, all bring something to the table. All have a niche that can be exploited to help round out your overall skills

I think starting out, we should all get something fairly decent, get some skills and then figure out things as we go. I started with a Reflex and Imperial. The idea was to ensure instant success or get in cheap and out on the cheap but with the intention of success. Then the DM2, then a step back with the ONE. After that, it’s been a bit crazy with purchases and I can’t really keep track anymore after that.

I have no issue with the ONE or the Protostar, considering I have those as well.

What I like about stuff like the DM2 with the two bearings is it lets you grow without more investment. The argument to bind or not to bind right off is not an issue up for debate. I don’t say I want to discount it, it’s just a personal decision for the thrower to make. I’m in favor of getting through the beginner tricks, then learning to bind before going through intermediate tricks. That’s my position. There’s no absolute right or wrong. But, learning to bind sooner opens up more options.

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Dark magic two’s are amazing. So are northstars.

13

Well im going to order a yoyo today (maybe 2). I just want it to arrive so i can start throwing :D.

Im getting a DM2 for sure. I want the solid red one. After noticing the store didnt have any in stock i went to amazon. I saw an ad where if i signed up for an amazon card i would get an instant 30$ gift card. Got that approved so im pretty much getting it for 10$. Not only that but its free shipping :stuck_out_tongue:

Now i was thinking about getting a YYF One. Just so i could have an all plastic yoyo. You guys said variety is a good thing. and its all about finding my personal preference. So i think having a few to go to would be nice. And for 10 bucks can i really go wrong? I was wondering tho, is the YYF Whip better than the One? Both are the same price, figured the whip was just the next version of the One.

Lastly, accessories i should get from the start… I would need to get both responsive and unresponsive lube if i would like the option to switch back and forth correct? Then string… 100% poly is the way to go correct? If so ill just get a 100 pack.

I appreciate everyones help! thank you all.

-xICooRsYIx

14

Of course, most of us here support YYE, so we of course suggest you buy the DM2 here. Regardless, you’ll still get help form the user base regardless where you buy it. So, if you’re getting a great deal, well, then go for it.

The ONE vs the Whip.
They are different. The WHIP is like a light weight DieNasty, sort of. It’s the same basic shape as the DieNasty and PGM. It does not use the same die, it’s a bit smaller and much lighter. The ONE, the only package you should consider is the 2-bearing package, the DVD package isn’t as good because it only includes the thinner bearing. I have both. I like both. I keep my ONE responsive. I play the WHIP more, mostly because it’s non-responsive. All I can say is they are different and leave it at that. Heck, get both.

String:
I’m using 100% poly and liking it better than 50/50 Slick 6 and definitely way more than cotton, so limit your choices to 100% poly or Slick6. Either are fine for where you are. I mean, sure, string is important, but you can always change string. I would say either choice is fine.

Lube:
Personally, I prefer thin bearings for responsive play. But you can use YYJ thick lube to make it more responsive, then thin lube to change that because the YYJ thin lube breaks down the thick lube. However, I’d prefer to clean the bearing as opposed to putting lots of lube in there, even a thick lube broken down with thin lube… I just prefer a clean bearing with lite thin lube. If you’re thinking this route, get both thin and thick YYJ lube.

While you’re at it, order a set of replacement response pads for both your DM2 and the ONE or WHIP. I think all 3 are compatible with flowable silicone if you want to go down the DIY route.

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If you got the dm2 for that cheap get both the one and the whip if its a toss up. They are great to have in your collection anyway. I got them both and even though they are both ten bucks, they each play way different, just as in studio said above. I personally like the whip more if you can bind but I always carry my one since its the only fully responsive throw I have and people always want to play with a yoyo lol

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I would get it here if they had the solid red one in stock. I could always use that 30$ towards something else later on. But going through amazon would be the best deal for me, and its only human that i go with the cheapest price. Plus, this way i can take that saved money and put it towards other yoyos LD

As far as the whip or the one, i will definately purchase it from here. As well as all the accessories i need :smiley:

thanks again

-xICooRsYIx

17

I think for the savings you’re getting on the DM2, it’s foolish to pass it up. Yes, only human. Hey, I love shiopping at YYE too, but hey, I’d take that kind of a deal too.

If you can then swing it, a bottle of thick and thin YYJ lube. A Whip, a 2-bearing packaged ONE, and if you want to save money, get the 100% poly strings in white, it’s $2 less than color strings. Response pads will run you less than $10 for all 3 yoyos combined. It’s probably going to be around $6 or so. SO, maybe $55 all total with shipping. Plus the DM2 from somewhere else. Not a bad initial investment.

My DM2, I bought extra response pads, thick and thin lube and 100-count strings.(cotton). I almost always buy bulk strings with every YYE order, even if I don’t need them. I like to have excessive inventory. Plus with 2 kids learning to yoyo, strings could go fast! Plus, I throw multiple yoyos so I could potentially go through many strings a week once my skills improve and I start throwing a lot more!

18

YYJ has the best beginner yoyo in the market. I heard that the YYJ Journey is good, but if you want to try other companies like YYF or Duncan, let me know.

19

So ive been trying to contact the sellers on amazon to see if i have the option to choose the color and none have gotten back to me. The listings just say “color varies” so i think they just send you a random color. The whole point of going on amazon was to get the solid red one. But then i discovered that i get 30$ off and free shipping. so now im stuck on what i should do.

Should i just order the black spade edition of the yoyo? it does look sick, i was just taking into consideration it being my first yoyo i should save where i can. Or do i wait to hear back from the sellers on amazon.

I just want a yoyo NOW haha i almost went to toysrus and grabbed a butterfly just for fun.

On another note, browsing the forums i hear alot about discontinued/special edition yoyo’s. Do these things become rare/valuable over time or something? Im the type of person that likes to collect things, and yoyos might be my next vice.

what to do what to do.

-xICooRsYIx

20

Just gunna recommend the DMII as well. It’s really a great yo-yo. The caps looks kind of… clunky though. Personal squabble. It plays awesome though :smiley:

I would just get whatever color. I’m someone who doesn’t care much for looks, though, so meh. I guess, also, with choosing a yoyo, you can just pick one up and use it. I’m pretty sure almost every yoyo on the market can do nearly very trick in the book. It’s mainly just a prefrence thing, like picking a car. They all can drive, but which one drives the best…

Also, the Black Spade DM looks pretty awesome :stuck_out_tongue_winking_eye: I’d just go with that one.